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Monthly Archives: April 2014

Happy Spring ya’ll! We know that finals are almost here and you are rushing to turn in last minute papers and projects. Why not take some time to relax from all the craziness? Come to the International and Area Studies Library (located on the third floor of the Main Library building) for an evening of relaxing Carnatic violin music, along with some yummy Indian snacks and pastries!

An Evening of Carnatic Violin. Photo courtesy of the International and Area Studies Library

For the event, performers include veena player Saraswathi Ranganathan, mridangam player Patri Satish Kumar and Ganapathi Ranganathan on the kanjira.

So, what exactly is carnatic violin music? It is defined as the “system of music commonly associated with the southern part of the Indian subcontinent” and “It is one of two main sub-genres of Indian classical music that evolved from ancient Hindu traditions.” Want to learn more? Well, lucky for us, there is a subject guide about that! (you see, there are helpful subject guides for everything!). Be sure to take a study break and check it out!

If you would like to hear more about carnatic violin, here are some more resources like books and audio recordings from the library catalog. Be sure to arrive to the event early! It’s sure to be a full house.

Dear Inquisitive UGLers: Last week you may have noticed a whiteboard near the UGL’s entrance. This was Question Board’s more mobile cousin, Whiteboard, sent as a scout to ask you one simple question. The question was: Can you stump QB? Many riddles were posed, and QB has answers for some of them – but for others, your help is needed. Read on to help QB conquer these confounding queries.

Well, can you?

First is this riddle, which QB feels quite confident about:

When I was young, I wear white
When I was a teen, I wear green
Now that I’m hot, I wear red
Who am I? Please address!

One intrepid member of Club UGL already put forth an answer on dear cousin Whiteboard, saying that the answer was ‘Strawberry…’ but then the original riddler responded with this:

This came quite close, but I am not.
For strawberry’s sweet, but I am hot.
You have given quite a close try
So I reward you with a smile

Look at that smile.

QB, driven by the idea of smiling rewards, would like to put forth that the answer to this riddle is perhaps….a pepper? Yes, that sounds right. QB is pretty sure of the answer for this one, as well:

What falls but never breaks?
What breaks but never falls?
Answers are connected.

QB doesn’t even need any incredibly useful library resources to pull off this one. The answer is as clear as night and day, because it is night and day. Night falls, and day breaks. QB is clearly on a roll here. QB can roll, too! Are you listening, Whiteboard?!

This riddle was also answered by an intrepid student…what do you think of their answer? QB thinks they’re close…if you have input, let QB know in the comments.

Three men are abducted and held hostage. The captor tells them he will set them free if they can solve this puzzle. He blindfolds the men, and each is wearing a hat, and stations them along a staircase – one at the top, one in the middle, and one at the bottom. On the captor’s cue, they remove the blindfolds. There are two kinds of hats: red & white. The goal is for one of the prisoners to correctly identify which color hat they are wearing. They maynot remove the hats. The hats have been randomized so that there is either 1 red + 2 white or vice-versa. The prisoners must remain facing forward or else they will be executed. How will they survive? They also may not speak for any reason except to guess.

The student provided answer was:

If they can walk, then they can switch positions. The one that sees two red/white hats know they must be wearing the other hat.

That make sense to QB..do you have any other possible solutions? Very intriguing. Also intriguing is this final riddle, which QB has thought and thought on, but still has no answer for…

I am black as night
Then I am red and bright
Then I am grey and bright
Who am I?
Can you get it right?

If you can figure it out, please share your wisdom with QB in the comment section. And if you can come up with further riddles and ridiculous (though very interesting) questions, remember to get them to QB via the QB online form. From the QB page you can also browse other questions and QB’s lovingly researched answers. Another option is to visit QB in the lower level of the UGL and read answers there. …Please. Follow cousin Whiteboard down here. QB is so lonely.

April is designated as Sexual Assault Awareness Month in the United States. The Women’s Resource Center on campus has been having events all month, with more still to come in the next week. Read on to find out how to participate, and how the library can help you learn more about understanding and preventing sexual violence.

Whether your on-campus or off, many of the events and campaigns held during Sexual Assault Awareness Month have as their end goal of educating people about the problems of sexual assault. If you’ve been educated about an issue, such as sexual assault, you’re better prepared to put an end to it, or improve it. If you’re unable to attend any of these events, the library, as a place concerned with the sharing of knowledge, can help you educate yourself and become a better ally to those who need your help. There’s a subject guide on rape and sexual assault that can help you find books and articles on those subjects and further your knowledge. Here’s another guide about sexual harassment, which is a related topic you can educate yourself about and help prevent. Searching in the catalog for subjects like “Rape Prevention” can also bring up informative and helpful books, such as Yes Means Yes!: Visions of Female Sexual Power and a World Without Rape.

If you want help researching sexual assault, you can ask a librarian for help. If you need personal help coping with sexual assault, the Women’s Resource Center has lists of campus and community resources that you can look to for assistance. No matter what you need, somone can help you find it.

Have you ever wondered what a librarian’s job looks like? Or what exactly the staff members, faculty, and graduate assistants do at the Undergraduate Library during the day? Here’s your chance to find out! Meet Angeline, a graduate assistant at the UGL.

Q: So, Angeline, what do you do here?
A: Well, I’m a graduate assistant, so I get to do a lot of different things! Most often, I work at the research desk on the upper level of the UGL, and I also answer your questions through the Ask A Librarian chat. I teach library instruction classes for CMN 101/111, Rhet 105, and ESL 115 classes, so you may have had me as your instructor in one of those sessions. I’m here early to open the UGL on Saturday mornings, so if you really want to make my day, feel free to bring me tea! One of the projects I get to work on that I’m really excited about is digitizing video games.

Q: That sounds awesome. What’s your favorite part about your job?
A: Definitely the people I work with. Between having a lot of classes together and working together, all the graduate assistants here are pretty close. I really like how we all support each other, both in this job and as we have started looking for full-time employment after graduation.

Q: What’s your favorite part of the UGL?
A: Hmmm…the staff area! If you haven’t been back there–and, of course you haven’t, you’re probably not staff–it’s like Narnia. I mean, literally, I have to wear a jacket because it’s so cold.

Q: Besides working at the UGL, what do you do for fun?
A: I enjoy reading comics, mostly from the UGL because we have a really great collection. I’m a big Captain America fan, so I requested the comics we don’t have here from other libraries through I-Share so I could read them ALL.

Q: Nice! Now, let’s talk about something really important. Where is your favorite place to eat in town?
A: Black Dog! I love me some BBQ.

Q: Yum. What’s your favorite part of working with students?
A: Helping students find the information they need. There’s nothing better than having a student ask you for help, then being able to work with them to find what they’re looking for. It makes me feel like a superhero…but with less explosions. Although I did have to call an ambulance once.

Q: What do you wish students knew about the UGL?
A: That so many people who work at the UGL are here to answer your questions and help you with whatever you might need. So, come visit me on the research desk, I’d love to help!

You may have noticed that there’s a survey going on in the library – there are table tents, flyers, and images on the digital displays (those TVs that hang from the walls everywhere) telling you to take the survey and share your opinions with us. Why should you?

The puppy wants you to share, and the puppy wants you to win.

Improving Library Services

One reason you should take the library survey is so that we know what’s working for you and what isn’t. If the answers we receive on the survey tell us that something we’re doing is helpful to most people, we can make sure we keep providing that service successfully. If the answers we receive tell us that something needs to be fixed or improved, we can work on making it better based on what you tell us. There are lots of other ways you can share your opinions with us – like this feedback form, or messaging us on Twitter – but if you use this survey, we can have everyone’s answers to standardized questions in one place, and that makes it easier to make decisions!

Union Bookstore Gift Card

The other reason you should take the survey is that your participation puts you in the running for a $50 Union Bookstore gift card. Fifty whole dollars! What can you buy with $50? That will get you:

Or anything else you can think of that’s available in the Union Bookstore (maybe a textbook for next semester?).

All your library and sweatpants dreams can come true, but you have to take the survey to get there. We appreciate everyone who takes the time to share their opinions and we look forward to seeing what you have to say.

Fellow UGL’ers, it’s April and spring is finally here! That means—it is also National Poetry Month! In honor of all that is poetic, the UGL’s own graduate assistants will share their favorite poet, poem, or collection of poems.

“I was a child and she was a child,
In this kingdom by the sea,
But we loved with a love that was more than love—
I and my Annabel Lee—
With a love that the wingèd seraphs of Heaven
Coveted her and me.”

By this time of the academic year, you’ve probably heard about Inclusive Illinois on campus. Inclusivity is a pretty big deal around the University of Illinois. It’s so central to the University as an institution that campus events are scheduled each semester to demonstrate the University’s commitment, celebrate its achievements, and educate the campus and community about diversity and inclusivity.

Inclusive Illinois Day installment in September at the School of Social Work

This week, there are a lot of great events to raise awareness and celebrate inclusivity and diversity here at University of Illinois. From the FashionAble Fundraiser at the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts to the Celebration of Women art exhibit or the Illini baseball tailgate and game, there is an Inclusive Illinois event for everyone! Be sure to check out the next installment of the Chancellor’s Lecture Series on Diversity and Cultural Understanding given by best-selling author and activist Zach Wahls.

Today, you’re invited to join the first #ManyVoices Conversation at locations across campus and share what an inclusive community means to you. The #ManyVoices organizers will be waiting to hear your story at the following locations and times:

This weekend (April 4-6) is Mom’s Weekend! Are you ready for all moms, all the time? Here’s a round-up of official Mom’s Weekend resources, as well as some mom-themed movies you can watch in your downtime, whether your mom is visiting this weekend or not.

The UGL can help!

Your first stop in Mom’s Weekend planning should be consulting the official Mom’s Weekend site. It’ll give you an overview of what’s happening, so you can get an idea of what kind of events you want to attend. When it’s time to get down to the nitty-gritty and plan your agenda, the Mom’s Weekend calendar will provide you with more details about times, locations, and prices. It has every single campus event you and your mom could possibly dream of.

The events that are lined up will be a lot of fun, but your mom (and you!) will probably want to rest at some point. For when you’re just hanging out, here are some movies and shows about moms that you can watch together. And if you don’t have a mom visiting you this weekend, grab a friend’s mom. They like to watch movies, too.